The objective of the study is to identify factors associated with effective hospital discharge planning. Specifically, the study will examine the effects of patient factors, family factors, discharge destination, and features of the planning process itself on several criteria of effective discharge planning. Those criteria include the timeliness of discharge, patient and family satisfaction with the discharge plan, adequacy of planned aftercare to meet patient needs, and subsequent readmissions. The interrelationship of these criteria will be explored. Key factors in the study include diagnosis, discharge destination, length of hospital stay, patient dependency at discharge, patient demographics and social support, complications to discharge planning, and readmissions. This prospective study will be based on sampling at admission; interviews with patients, family, and medical personnel at the time of hospitalization; and follow-up data. Its design will provide a comprehensive view of the discharge planning process, considering previously cited factors as well as several untested ones which likely bear upon its effectiveness. A stratified sample of 210 elderly hospitalized patients diagnosed with coronary vascualr accident, hip fracture, or congestive heart failure, their families, and their discharge planners will be studied. Data will be gathered from interviews and from hospital records. Patients will be queried within 24 hours prior to their hospital discharge and again one month after discharge. Data from discharge planners will be gathered during and immediately after the time at which discharge plans are made. The study will not intrude upon or alter patients' receipt of hospital medical, social, or discharge planning services. Data analysis techniques provide for data reduction, stratified analysis, and linear models. Correlational and regression analyses will be used to address the major research questions regarding the effects of patient and family factors, discharge destanation, and features of the discharge planning process on such dependent variables as timeliness, satisfaction, adequacy, and redmission. Other exploratory questions will be addressed through descriptive statistics. Results should be of interest to the fields of nursing, social work, and hospital finance and administration. The study has potential implications for training of discharge planners, for the design and delivery of hospital discharge planning, and for future study of discharge planning and its effects.